Jeff Clement Hits For the Cycle

Indianapolis Indians first baseman Jeff Clement hit for the cycle tonight, becoming the first Indianapolis Indian to accomplish the feat since Alex Presley on June 27th, 2010. Clement accomplished the feat after a triple in the bottom of the seventh inning.

“To be honest, I wasn’t even thinking about it,” Clement said of the cycle during his triple. “I knew it was deep out there, I saw the hop it took. I probably wouldn’t have gone to third, because I’m not real fast, but since it’s so far out there, I decided to go for it and got into third and didn’t know until the third baseman said something to me that it was for the cycle.”

Clement started off his night with a leadoff double in the bottom of the second. He added his single in the bottom of the third inning. His sixth homer of the year came to lead off the bottom of the sixth inning. Then, with two outs in the bottom of the seventh, Clement tripled, bringing in two runs to extend Indianapolis’ lead to 7-2, and completing his 4-for-4 day.

Clement is hitting for a .307/.391/.536 line in 153 at-bats on the year. His triple tonight was the first of the year, and his first since the 2010 season.

Does he deserve one more shot? Given his pedigree of being a former Top 3 pick? Injuries have taken a toll on his career, but he seems to be a more complete hitter now. Not all about the long ball for him anymore.

Tim is the owner and editor in chief of Pirates Prospects. He started the site in January 2009, and turned it into his full time job during the 2011 season. Prior to starting Pirates Prospects, Tim worked with AccuScore.com, providing MLB, NHL, and NFL coverage to various national media outlets, including ESPN Insider, USA Today, Yahoo Sports, and the Wall Street Journal. He also writes the annual Prospect Guide, which is sold through the site. Tim lives in Bradenton, where he provides live coverage all year of Spring Training, mini camp, instructs, the Bradenton Marauders, and the GCL Pirates.